LEJOG Day 1: Land's End to Mousehole

Weather: Driving Mist, clearing to cloudy

Distance covered today: 19.7km (12.1mi)

Last night's B&B: Cornerways (£35)

Percent complete:  1.1%

GPS satellite track of today's route:  Day 1

It had to be done!  There is this rather corny tradition that one has to have one’s photo taken next to the Land’s End sign-post by the man in the little shed who puts your name on the pole. I paid the rather exorbitant price on condition he also used my camera so that I could include the picture in my blog. He’ll send the official picture home. So now I was officially on my way!

I was interested to hear from him that there hadn’t been any other LEJOG nutters as customers this week. He was earning his crust by taking pictures of day-trippers who wanted the sign to say how far they were from home in some midlands' industrial town! Seems it is a thriving business. All the other attractions which compete earnestly with each other to reach ever higher levels of kitsch are still closed for the winter, but there is still a steady flow of people who want to have their picture taken at the end of their land!

There was one lovely moment five minutes earlier as I was arriving on the bus. I was accosted by a rather attractive and lissom young lady speaking in a French accent and flailing a couple of walking poles in all directions.  It turned out she was looking for the start of the South West Coastal Path and had not been able to understand the instructions of the staff inside the buildings. She told me that this was the third time she had struck out!  I was just about to suggest she amend her plans and take to the road with me, when another official materialised and pointed her in the appropriate direction. Probably a good thing. She looked a lot fitter than me!!

Talking of the bus, of course I got chatting to the young female bus driver, having successfully negotiated free travel with my Surrey old codgers’ bus pass, and she was very interested to hear all about my plans. Much later, as I was walking down a tiny single lane road on my way to Mousehole (pronounced "mouzzel", in case you didn’t know), suddenly this bus hove into view, occupying most of the road and forcing me tight against the high, hedged verges. The bus stopped, the door opened and there she was, grinning from ear to ear!!  She wished me all the best, revved the engine and disappeared in a cloud of diesel fumes followed by a little pony-tail of cars all having to proceed at her pace! Not a care in the world. I do like this place….

The walking today was relatively easy as most of it was on the back lanes of the lower peninsula, and it wasn’t as hilly as I had expected. Having said that, I had deliberately planned in a few footpaths where they afforded a logical short-cut. This steepened my learning curve. One footpath looks much like another on an OS map, but I found that Cornishmen are a tough breed. These were not the refined and predictable footpaths of the Surrey Hills. To all intents and purposes they didn’t exist at all!  In general they were no more than rights of way through knee-high grassland, punctuated every now and then by gargantuan granite walls which are supposed to be stiles! Climbing over one of those was like mastering a climbing wall in a leisure centre where every second foothold was either completely missing or Vaselined for extra challenge! This will change of course when I get onto the recognised trails, but meanwhile, I’ve learned my lesson: the short-cut has to be substantial!

At one point, I wasn’t quite sure whether I was on a path or not, and saw a farmer on a huge tractor in the field. I decided to seek his advice, expecting to be yelled at for trespass. Quite the contrary, he stopped the tractor, jumped down and, in a wide Cornish accent, proceeded to detain me for 10 minutes, regaling me on the  various affairs of the farm. Clearly I was a polite if rather captive ear, and he got his money’s worth!  It must be lonely on his tractor…

In the event, the weather today was in general better than expected. I started out in a rather dank, wind-driven drizzle, but by lunch-time it was just misty if still rather dank.  Quite pleasant for walking, if not for photography or sight-seeing. Mostly I couldn’t see more than 50 yards. Today’s walk was longer than I had anticipated at 19.5 km (12.1 miles), but although I am clearly tired, I was feeling well enough (or thirsty enough) to walk an additional couple of miles back from my B&B to the delightful coastal village of Mousehill to find a pub.

Staggering back may be more difficult!

A Cornish path

This stone circle is called "The Merry Maidens' Stone Circle", so named according to legend because the maidens were turned to stone for dancing in a circle. Be warned, my ladies...

Beautiful Cornwall in early spring

It may have been too misty for views, but the architecture is stunning!

A lovely Cornish cottage, in a beautiful location beside a stream. Perfect!!